Termites are small creatures that can easily be mistaken for ants. However, ants are a nuisance, termites cost billions of dollars worth of damage every year. They can live under your home in colonies and go undetected for an extended period of time.
The colony will eat approximately 6 inches of 2×4 wood in just 5 months. It’s easy to see how this could affect the stability of your home.
The best approach is to engage local specialists in termite management, they will undertake annual inspections, help you eliminate any issue, and advise re protecting your home against these destructive pests.
There is little doubt that the professionals are the best option for eliminating the termites. They have the knowledge, experience, and the equipment to ensure all the termites are gone. It can be useful to understand the three main approaches to eliminating and protecting your home from termites.
- The Trench
Termites need to stay moist. This is why they build their colony under your home but maintain tunnels to the outside world. Travelling through the soil keeps them moist. If you have termites you’ll notice small holes in the soil around your property. Closing one will simply mean another one opens.
You can dig a trench close to the wall of your home and put termiticide in the trench before filling it back in. Any termites that try to go through the termiticide will be poisoned and die. It effectively kills the existing nest and prevents future attacks.
- Treating Your Wood
Another way of both eliminating and protecting against future infestations is to treat the wood. Professionals will usually spray it, if you’re doing it yourself you may wish to paint it on with a brush.
The wood treatment will contain a substance like borate which has been shown to be effective at killing termites. They’ll eat the wood and die. It also deters termites from arriving or setting up a home in your home. This helps to ensure you stay termite free in the future.
- Baiting
It is possible to place bait boxes in positions where the termites are likely to find them. The termites will take the bait and sample it. Once they establish it’s okay they mark the spot and take food to the colony. At this stage, you can swap the bait for a poisoned version of it and effectively kill the colony.
It’s effective and leaving the bait station in position even when you don’t have termites will give you a warning if a new infestation tries to set up home.
Final Thoughts
The best approach to eliminate termites and prevent them from returning is to use all three methods above. It may seem like overkill but it’s effective and that is important.
Of course, this needs to be accompanied by regular inspections to ensure there are no termites and if they do sneak in, to take care of them promptly.
